Photoluminescence and afterglow of Tb3+ doped BaAl2O4

Abstract

Tb3+ doped BaAl2O4 phosphors (0–9.0 mol%) were prepared through sol–gel combustion method. The crystal structure, morphology, chemical composition, photoluminescence (PL), afterglow and thermoluminescence (TL) glow curve of Tb3+ doped BaAl2O4 were investigated by means of X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, PL spectroscopy, afterglow spectroscopy, and TL dosimetry. Characterizations of the PL and afterglow spectra indicate that both Tb3+ doping species and oxygen vacancies act as the luminescence center of PL whereas only Tb3+ dopant works as the luminescence center of afterglow for Tb3+ doped BaAl2O4. The green afterglow of Tb3+ doped BaAl2O4 lasts for about 214 min at the optimal doping concentration of about 1.0 mol%. The profile of TL glow curve of Tb3+ doped BaAl2O4 heavily depends on the doping concentration, and the evolution of the TL glow curve with doping concentration reveals that doping BaAl2O4 with Tb3+ can significantly modify the distribution of carrier traps in the phosphor. The effects of Tb3+ doping on the PL, afterglow, and TL glow curve of Tb3+ doped BaAl2O4 are discussed in terms of the creation, recombination, and neutralization of defects in BaAl2O4. This work proves that doing with Tb3+ species is a general and robust strategy for endowing BaAl2O4 with highly efficient green afterglow. This “defect engineering” approach enables ultra-long afterglow for Tb3+ doped BaAl2O4 when defect centers in the phosphors are optimized.